8-run inning helps Mets win second game of doubleheader
WASHINGTON — Finally, the ketchup has come out of the bottle.
The Mets had been waiting for the game when their offensive explosion matched quality pitching. That game came Sunday in the second game of a doubleheader against the Washington Nationals when the Mets used an eight-run fifth inning to down their NL East foes 8-2 at Nationals Park.
The Mets have remained somewhat optimistic during a difficult month but in recent days the positivity has been strained. Only hours earlier, the Mets went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and stranded nine runners in the first game of the day. They seemed flummoxed, both at the plate and in the clubhouse when asked about the nearly non-existing production.
But then came the top of the fifth. The Mets (20-21) were down 1-0 with the bottom of the order due up.
A single and an RBI double by Starling Marte and Mark Canha, two hitters who have struggled more than others this season, tied the game at 1-1. A walk by Tommy Pham and a one-out single to the right-center gap by Brandon Nimmo gave the Mets a 2-1 lead.
All of the bad luck the Mets have had suddenly turned good. Francisco Lindor legged out an infield hit with two outs to make it 3-1. Pete Alonso was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Brett Baty.
The Nationals (17-23) replaced Jake Irvin (1-1) with left-hander Mason Thompson and he walked Baty to put another run on the board. The Mets batted around and then some.
Marte’s fly ball dropped into no man’s land in center field, just out of the reach of the charging Alex Call, and Lindor and Alonso scored. He stole second and the throw from catcher Riley Adams went into center, giving Baty plenty of time to score from third.
Canha singled up the center to score Marte and make it 8-1.
It took the pressure off of Max Scherzer (3-2). Making his first start in nearly two weeks, Scherzer limited his former team to one earned run on two hits over five innings. He struck out six but walked two and hit one. It wasn’t his most efficient start but it was his best of the season.
Maybe the most important aspect of Scherzer’s start was his velocity: He started around 93, sat comfortably at 94 and touched 95 in the middle.
The next step for Scherzer is to go seven innings but with injuries bookending a suspension for sticky stuff, Scherzer hasn’t been able to establish any sort of routine and he hasn’t been able to give the Mets what they’ve needed.
This start felt like a step in the right direction.
The Mets’ bullpen bent, but didn’t break with Brooks Raley, Jeff Brigham and Zach Muckenhirn combining to go the rest of the way. Muckenhirn, the Mets’ 27th man for the doubleheader, went two innings and allowed one run.
